This invention relates to a virtual computer system and to a technique of processing a virtual computer system to deal with a privileged operation exception and an interruption occurring in OSs that are executed separately in a plurality of logical partitions.
The popularization of the use of the Internet and broadband networks in business has brought an increase in requests for improved processing performance of information systems that support business. To meet the requests for improved processing performance, an information system employs a plurality of servers (computers) in processing information. Obtaining more improved processing performance means employing more servers, and some information systems are as large as having several thousands to ten thousands of servers. The cost of running and managing such large-scale information systems, especially the cost for maintenance of their servers, rises in proportion to the count of the servers employed.
Server consolidation, in which the server count is decreased by employing a few high-performance servers that take over processing formerly performed by a plurality of servers, is attracting attention as a way to keep the running and managing cost from increasing. An architecture known to be capable of achieving such server consolidation is a virtual computer system utilizing logical partitioning in which one hardware resource is partitioned into a plurality of logical partitions and each of the logical partitions is provided with an OS to serve as a server (see U.S. Pat. No. 6,397,242, for example). Logical partitioning is characterized by sharing a CPU among a plurality of logical partitions, thereby raising the operating ratio of the CPU and efficiently achieving server consolidation.
In the example of prior art provided by U.S. Pat. No. 6,397,242, server consolidation is achieved by executing one host OS on one server and running a plurality of guest OSs on the host OS to use each of the guest OSs as a server.